Planting device



y 1, 1939. G T M S 2,165,664

PLANTING DEVICE Filed Feb. 28, 1938 Patented July 11, 1939 PLANTINGDEVICE,

Albert G. Thomas, Lynchburg,

Va., assignor to Sydn'or-Thompson-Mfg. Company, Inc., Lynchburg, Va.

Application February 28, 1938,,Serial No. 193,022

3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in planting devices for settingtobacco, cabbage, tomatoes, and other plants, and is acontinuationin-part of my co-pending application Serial No.

5 188,597, filed February 4, 1938.

An object is to cheap, and reliable construction.

Another object is the provision of a planter with valve operatingmechanism so placed that it will not interfere with the hand.

Other objects will appear in the following description.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a part sectional side elevation of a planter with simplifiedvalve operating mechanism.

Figure 2 is a front elevation, with plant tube partly broken away, ofthe device shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary side elevation, in part section, of a planterwith simplified valve .operating mechanism and with a valve adjustment.

Figure 4 is a plan view, with handle broken away, of a planter with asupporting stirrup around the plant tube.

Figure 5 is a plan view of a modified form of control lever and meansfor mounting it on a planter.

Figure 6 is a. plan view, with handle broken away, of the device ofFigure 1. The front support 3 is shown in section.

Figure 7 is a side elevation of a bent finger pull lever.

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a novel slidable finger pull rod.

Figure 9 is a side elevation of the pull rod of Figure 8 as adapted to aplanter.

In Figure 1, water tank I has handle 2 attached by means of verticalsupports 3 and 4. Bar 5 has reduced extension 6 passing loosely througha suitable hole in support 4. Pin 1 through extension 6, and shoulder 8limit the lateral movement of bar 5 and so act as a pivot since looselyfitted extension 6 allows free vertical movement of the opposite end ofbar 5.

Bar 5, as shown in Fig. 6, has slot 9 and arms I and II to which aretied wires I2 and I3 for rotating conically shaped shovel I4 inclockwisedirection about pivot I on fixed conically shaped shovel I6 which isriveted to tank I.

Catch I l is formed at the top of valve 'rod I8- which is fastened insuitable manner to rubber valve I9 which is surrounded by cylindricalvalve guide 20 fastened to bottom 2| of tank I. This provide a planterof simple,

bottom is provided with valve seat 22 having port 23 which is closedwhen valve I9 is properly seated. Water guide 24 is fastened to shovelI5 cam 26 with edge 28 will then force catch I I to the left so thatcatch I off the edge of slot 9 and rod I8 pulled downward by meansfastened to rod I8 and tank I,

from port 23 to the 5 ll of tank I is valve U shaped cross sec- 28 asshown. Valve which is slidable in serves to prevent rota- 1Oconsequently catch I1.

26 in rod I8 acts as is pulled upward by over-hanging catch cam 26 willthen strike I, after rod It has been distance. Contact of rod I8 and Iwill drop will be quickly of tension spring 29, so that valve I8 willthen close port 23, after this port has been previously opened for atime by lifting valve I8 as explained. Therefore the amount of waterreleased through port 23 will be operation if the speed of lift Wires I2and I3, which may are passed through eye 30 the same for each bar 5 isthe same. be one bent wire, lug 3| which is riveted or welded to shovelI4 as shown. Lug 3| 3 also has eye 32 through which the lower end of rod33 is looped to act as a pivot. Rod 33 passes through a suitable hole inguide lug 3 fastened to plant tube 36 which is fastened to tank I. theopen The lower I4 normally pressed against end of tube 36 leads intospace between shovels 33 is surrounded by compression presses againstlug 34 and lug 3 I4 and I6. Rod spring 35 which I to keep shovel shovelI6.

In operation, tank I is nearly filled with Water and a plant is dropped,roots down, into tube 36 so that the plant comes I; sition betweenshovels I4' 0 rest in upright poand I6. The cone formed by the shovelsis then pressed into the ground the desired distance sure of the hand onhandle 2.

by a downward pres- Bar 5 is then grasped with the fingers and is pulledupward so that shovel shovel I6 and the plant will hole made by theshovels.

I4 will be pulled outward away from be dropped into the At the same timecatch I I Will be lifted a certain distance and then released, asdescribed, so that valve I9 will be momentarily lifted to release asmall quantity of water through port 23. between guide 24 and shovelThis water will flow It to the roots of the plant. Then the shovels arelifted from the earth, being maintained in open position by squeezingbar 5 upward toward handle 2. After the jaws are lifted clear of theground bar 5 is released so that the jaws are closed again by action ofspring 35. Dirt may be then scraped around the root manually or by meansof devices as described in my above mentioned co-pending patentapplication. The procedure is then repeated for the next plant to beset.

It will be noted that catch I1 is forced away from the hand so that itwill not rub the fingers and cause discomfort in operating the devicerepeatedly. Similarly, guide 21 is placed sufficiently below handle 2and bar 5 so that it will not interfere with the manual operations.

In Figure 3 the construction is essentially the same as in Figure 1,except that valve rod 31 has fastened to it cam 38 which strikes againstthe inclined edge 39 of U shaped guide 4!] fastened to tank 4|. Thumbscrew 42 is threaded through edge 39 and serves as a contact element forcam 38, so that the time of opening of the valve, not shown, may beadjusted. Depending arm 43 is fastened to pivoted manually operatedsqueeze bar 44 and engages the lower edge of cam 38 to lift this cam andvalve rod 31 when bar 44 is lifted. As cam 38 is lifted it is forced tothe left until it finally drops off projection 45 so that spring 46closes the valve. The time of opening of the valve may be lessened byshifting thumb screw 42 to the left and vice versa.

In Figure 4, water tank 4'! has fastened to it plant tube 48 as usual.Surrounding tube 48 and suitably fastened to tank 41 is stirrup 49 towhich is pivoted at 50 the rectangularly shaped looped finger lever 5!to which is fastened finger piece 52; or this finger piece may beintegral with lever 5|. Catch 53 fastened to valve rod 54 is lifted bythe edge 55 of lever 5! when finger piece 52 is lifted. Guide 56 issimilar to guide 2'? and is fastened to tank 41. Handle 5! is shownbroken away and the front handle support 58 is shown in section,

By this construction the leverage of pivot 50 may be extended as far asdesired and stirrup 4!! acts as a guard to prevent deformation of planttube 48. Wires 59 for opening the pivoted shovel are attached to lever5| as shown.

In Figure 5 lever 61, with finger piece 62, is pivoted to the legs of aU shaped element 60 which is fastened to water tank 63. This modifledform of control lever is adapted to be used in place of lever 5| inFigure 4, and correspondingly connected to the shovel and valveoperating mechanisms as in Figure 4.

Figure '7 shows a bar 64, with reduced portion 65, which may be used inplace of bar 5. The slanting portion 66 serves to drop the rear part ofthe bar so that it will not interfere with grasping the front higherportion with the fore fingers,

In Figure 9 each rod portion 61 of the pull rod of Figure 8 is mountedin lugs 68 and 69 secured to the outside of water tank 10. The tops ofthe rod portions 61 are joined to a finger piece ll, so that the pullrod can be lifted; the lower ends of the rod portions being bent to formhooks l2, This pull rod is adapted to be used in place of control bar 5in Figure 1; the horizontal portions joining the tops of elements 61 andfinger piece ll being adapted to engage catch l1 and the hooks l2suitably connected to the shovel control wires l2-l3.

Rod Bl may be bent to form a U shaped rod as shown in Figure 8. Thenthere would be a set of guide lugs for each leg and two hooks 12 wouldbe provided as shown so that a double looped wire can be used to openthe pivoted shovel. This is a very simple construction, employingsliding movement instead of pivoted movement.

Many changes of detail may be made without departing from the principlesof my invention.

What I claim is:

1. In a planting device, a tank for liquid, a shovel fixed to the lowerpart of said device, a movable shovel pivoted to said fixed shovel, aplant tube fastened to said tank and leading into the space between saidshovels, yielding means normally urging said movable shovel toward saidfixed shovel, a handle attached to said. tank, a valve in the bottom ofsaid tank, a valve rod attached to said valve, a portion of said valverod being inclined relative to the rest of said rod to act as a camportion and the upper portion of said rod terminating in a catch, amovable element adjacent said handle and linked to said movable shoveland coacting with said catch when said element is manually movedrelative to said handle, a guide for said valve rod, said guide beingfastened to said tank and having an inclined surface against which saidcam portion on said valve rod will strike to move said rod and catchlaterally so that said catch will be disengaged from contact with saidmovable elementand so as to allow said valve rod to drop to close saidvalve after said valve rod and valve have been lifted a pre-determineddistance by means of said element.

2. In a planting device, a tank for liquid, a shovel fixed to the lowerpart of said device, a movable shovel pivoted to said fixed shovel, aplant tube fastened to said tank and leading into the space between saidshovels, yielding means normally urging said movable shovel toward saidfixed shovel, a handle attached to said tank, a valve in the bottom ofsaid tank, a valve rod attached to said valve, 3. spring normally urgingsaid valve rod in a direction to close said valve, a portion of saidvalve rod being inclined relative to the rest of said rod to act as acam portion and the upper portion of said rod terminating in a catch, amovable element adjacent said handle and linked to said movable shoveland coacting with said catch when said element is manually movedrelative to said handle, a guide for said valve rod, said guide beingfastened to said tank and having an inclined surface against which saidcam portion on said valve rod will strike to move said rod and catchlaterally so that said catch will be disengaged from contact with saidmovable element and so to allow said valve rod to be moved by saidspring to close said valve after said valve rod and valve have beenlifted a pre-determined distance by means of said element.

3. Ina planting device, a tank for liquid, a shovel fixed to the lowerpart of said device, a movable shovel pivoted to said fixed shovel, aplant tube fastened to said tank and leading into the space between saidshovels, yielding means normally urging said movable shovel toward saidfixed shovel, a handle attached to said tank, a manually movable elementlinked to said movable shovel and adjacent said handle, a valve in thebottom of said tank, a valve rod attached to said valve, a springnormally urging said valve rod in a direction to close said valve, aguide for said valve rod, said guide being fastened to said tank, aportion of said valve rod being kinkecl to slide in said guide toprevent rotation of said rod, the upper portion of said rod terminatingin a catch; another portion of said rod being kinked to act as a camportion to strike against said guide and so to move said catch laterallyto be disengaged from contact with said movable element and so to allowsaid valve rod to be moved by said spring -to close said valve aftersaid valve rod and valve have been lifted a predetermined distance bymeans of said element.

ALBERT G. THOMAS.

